Cape Town Rocks!!

Cape Town is a magical city. I spent 2 great days in Cape Town, my first of 3 stops is this world class city. The purpose of this top wax’s to acclimate to my stay in. Africa, rest a bit from the travel from Europe, and get a good introduction to what Cape Town is all about. I feel like I accomplished all of this objectives and I had a great time.

First of all I loved my accomodations at the Blackheath Lodge. I fantastic accommodation in a great area of town. Great food, impoecible service and very gay friendly. It was the perfect spot to stay in to catch up on rest and also get about town.

Yesterday I climbed Lions Head Mountain. I am afraid of heights and it was a big challenge for me to accomplish this. While I ended up about 200 yards from the peak, I climbed so much further than I thought possible. My fear of heights completely immobilizes me at times. I realized I had reached my peak when my body would not climb any further.

There is that part of me that was screaming to go further. The negative devil that lives inside my mind was raging. “You are not good enough. You are a wimp, a little fairy boy that is afraid of heights!! What if the world found out what a wimp you are”. These are the things my brain yells at me. But I decided to stop and really take a look at what I was doing.

First of all, I had navigated my way to South Africa. This required a lot of success to afford such a journey.

Secondluy, I travelled alone to South Africa. This requires a lot of personal skills and the ability to be ok with my own company.

Next, I woke up sober and made a plan to stay sober for the day. This, by itself, is a miracle.

Next I decided to do something healthy for my body and mind and climb a mountain.

Then I was able to navigate the mountain, pushing myself past my fears and climb ladders, use metal chains, my hands, feet, and my ample behind to make my way up to my summit. My summit might be 200 yards from the peek, but its my summit and its better that 99% of the world did that day.

I find it amazing that at 55 years old, I still give a shit about what others think. I find it terrible that the negative thoughts still play such a huge part in my day tho day life. But I find it miraculous that if I take a moment to really look what is happening, I can squish the negativity and be a true judge of my accomplishments.

It was quite a personal accomplishment. When I reached the top I was grateful for the journey that this took. The physicals, the emotional and the spiritual. I did not get past my fears alone. I was inspired by others, through the countless people that have supported me in my life, I pushed past those negative thoughts and found my way forward.